The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1887-09-11
PRICE FIVE CENTS.
GLADSTONE AND THE SOUTH.
A JUST AND HIGH-MINDED EsIIMATD
OF HIS COURSE.

Mono the Less Great because Mumas. Nsv
Less Human Because Grcat-Tnherited
Froelivities Versus Moral Devciopusut-
His Chief Fault aud His Great Nisfsr.
tune that no Believed the London Times,
cepyrioM 1857. by Tns sUS Printing sHd Pubashsss
Asssc,dtson
LONDON, Sept. 10.-The sneer Of the Tincs
at Mr.. Gladstone In connection with the In.
vltation to attend the Constitutional centen.
NAL at Philadelphia is bitter. because It 10
founded on truth. "We should hardly select
Mr.. Blaine to represent the United States n an
English celebration were in question Is we'll
designed to remind the American people that
in the hour Of their agony Mr.. Gladstone was
rs open a foe Of the North as Mr.. Blaine Is Of
the despotism Of England toward ireland.
Tho moment is opportune for q perfectly
candid statement OF Mr.. Gladstone's opinions
concerning the American Union during the civil
war. and his conduct toward It. His biographers
Cloze over that portion Of his career as II it
contained matter to be ashamed Of The
speeches he made touching the topic are
scarcely mentioned. The fact that he was
Chancellor Of tho ExcheGuer In the Cabinet
which formally proclaimed British neutrality
while he actually avowed his partisanship with
the South is generally suppressed. His DECLARE
ton that Davis had made an army, q navy. and
South would win. and the barefaced falsehood
with which Lord John Russell and his col
leagues trifed with us while tho death struggle
proceeded. tremendously maintaining pre-
tence OF Indifference while carrying on the war
for the South on the high seas, It Is too much
tho practice Of the apologists Of MIR. Gladstone
and Of the Liberal British party to conceal.
Thore Is no reason why the whole truth should
not be told. 1t ought to be told fearlessly and
at once in justice to Mr.. Gladstone. When Il
is fully known and comprehended, no Ameri-
can, not condemned to blind fanaticism, can
really censure him.
OF Gladstone 1t must be said in sense higher
than 1t Is true OF any other statesman OF any age
that he is an Intellectual and moral growth In
politics. A man is not blamable for his birth
or his inheritance. Gladstone's father was an
English trader who included human beings
among his chattels. Sir John Gladstone fol-
lowed commerce with the love sailor has for
the sea. He was one OF the nine-tenths Of tho
English nation who believe that the highest
object Of craftsmanship under the British
crown Is to make money under the British dag.
Real property is not the only entail under
British institutions Most men In the House Of
Lords arc there because their fathers made 1t
compulsory that they should keep their estates
ana inevitable that they should transmititheir
opAhAohDs Nioupsoho WOO pOKu Will pECJuulCco
becoming the son Of slave owner and trader.
He made his entrance into public life-now
hfty-five years ago-with the legitimateIy ac-.
Quired baggage Of Q Tory. Almost his first
speech Of note was against the emancipation
Of slaves. It Is dubbed for him now that he
opposed only immediate and unconditional
emancipation. The fact is he was speaking for
the vested rights OF men OF his fathers class.
He wanted compensation for their human
property, and o hundred million dollars was
appropriated to settle the claims Of the British
shareholders Of Jamaica. This moral inhey-
itance exercised o kind Of dlminishing entail
upon Gladstone's mind: and he was not free
from It when the groat conflict between the
South and the North reached Its actual crisis.
He did indeed, array himself with fine periods
upon the side Of human freedom. So the Min
istry OF which he was q member arrayed itself
upon tho side Of strict neutrality. But the old
slave-trafacking commercial inheritance was
as subtly active In tho son Of Sir John Glad.
stone as the hatred Of republican institutions
was energetic in the conduct OF the Russell
Cabinet The man instinotively sympathized
with tho South. Tho Ministry oper boosted
that tho bubble OF republicanism was burst"
A second reason why It wcs certain that Mr..
Gladstone should sympathize with the South
Is to be found in his political economy. He had
OAtolCo puOiic Auo - pIOttCllOulbt. 10 De-
came convert to free trade. Whatever he
believes he honestly. vehemently. and power
fully advocates. Tho free trade progress OF
England rested chiefly on Its annually SWELL
ing commerce with tho Southern States, To
keep the South a purely agricultural country
was essential to the manufactures and COM
merce OF Great Britain. The development OF
the protective policy in America was distinct
lively Northern. TWAS accepted In England as
dangerous to British interests. The Southern
politicians were without exception free trad
ers. 1t was as much the interest OF the slave
owners to keep native manufactures out OF the
republic as 1t was the interest Of England that
they should be forbidden. The cheap manu-
features Of England in exchange for tho cotton
OF tho South was all that either wanted. It was
enough to insure perpetual content in Great
Britain and perpetual political supremacy for
the South In the control Of the republic.
Mr.. Gladstone was at that period engaged In
only two occupations. Ono was an investiga-
ton OF the time, the characteristics, and the
influence OF Homer. How many hours day
for several years preceding the outbreak OF the
rebellion he devoted to that subject only he
and his family can reveal. When not dwelling
on Olympus or wandering In Greece. he was
building up his immortal fame as master OF
economics and finance. Every steam engine
erected in the American republic for manufac.
turing purposes displaced his bases Of admin.
istrative calculation. Every now duty laid
upon British product by the American Con.
gross was 80 much taken away from his col.
umns Of England's taxable resources. More
over. the Northern advocates OF the protective
policy were heretics. returning, In his judy.
ment, to q false dogma which time had ex.
ploded. and for which. as he saw 1t in the creed
OF Manchester, not q solitary sound argument